Chapter 169

Chapter 169

Spendthrift Necromancer (169)

FlexPark Siwoo was next, followed by Cedric.

Cedric received a total of five tattoos.―Not bad.

Bear, eagle, lion, cheetah, and more.

Cedric nodded in satisfaction as he examined the intricate tattoos carved into his bones. With this, every male in the guild had received the benefits of Tattooing.

They left the lounge.

Seo Yerim and Han Sia, who had been talking together, looked over.

Park Siwoo was grinning from ear to ear.

Seo Yerim asked him.

“Something good happen?”

“You bet. Ahem. Noonim, take a look at this.”

Park Siwoo proudly raised his arm. There was an image of a hunting dog that looked ready to bark.[Hunting Dog Tattoo][Area: Arm][Effect 1. Agility increases by 6%.]

It was clearly just a simple drawing.

That much was nothing remarkable, but when they looked closely, detailed information appeared just like it would for an item. Both women's eyes widened.

“A tattoo?”

“But why does it give stats……?”

“Insane, right? Hyung learned this technique inside a Gate. Six percent stats per picture. For reference, I got four.”

“Four means…… twenty-four percent?”

“Right. And apparently you can get even more if your Level goes up. Right, Hyung?”

“Right.”

Kim Minwoo nodded and briefly explained the tattoos.

They were markings used by Barbarians inside the Gate.

And they provided powerful stat bonuses. While Seo Yerim was most shocked by the stat increase, Han Sia reacted differently.

“You're saying that tiny booger-sized picture costs at least twenty-five billion won? Not 2.5 million?”

“Barbarians normally cover nearly their entire bodies with tattoos. They're only this small because I personally modified the method.”

“You can modify things like that?”

“Turns out there isn't much you can't do if you pressure people hard enough. Anyway, all the men, including Cedric, have theirs now.”

Kim Minwoo snapped his fingers.

This time Merhen popped out.

“Merhen. You know these too, right?”―Yeah. Those Barbarians we saw back then had them.

“Want some too?”―……

Like that?

“Why? Don't like them?”―They're not pretty.

“Huh?”―I don't want them because they're ugly.

Merhen answered with absolute conviction.

Kim Minwoo blinked.

Admittedly, calling the designs pretty would be a stretch. The Hunting Dog Tattoo on Park Siwoo's arm alone proved that.

It depicted a dog drenched in blood, drooling like it had rabies while snarling viciously.

Seen positively, it looked brave, bloody, and manly. Seen negatively…… yeah, it wasn't pretty.

Park Siwoo scratched his head.

“Uh…… do you noonims feel the same way?”

“If the choice is getting one or not, then obviously I'd get one. But aesthetically…… yeah, it's kind of…….”

“I'm more worried about how expensive it is…… I don't know if I should accept something like this so casually…….”

The first was Seo Yerim's answer.

The second was Han Sia, who felt burdened by the price. She had been born the daughter of a wealthy family, but hadn't exactly lived while enjoying great financial benefits.

There was nothing strange about her reaction.

“Don't worry about the money. Think of it as a small gift. But aesthetics…… uh…… fine. Let's say that's an issue. Merhen?”―Yeah.

“Then what kind of picture do you think is pretty?”―Something like this.

Merhen held out a hand.

Water flowed above her palm and formed an intricate picture.

It depicted a tiny puppy sticking out its tongue and panting.

“Wow!”

“That's so cute!”

The two women stared admiringly at Merhen's water drawing.

Compared to the Hunting Dog Tattoo, their reactions were completely different.

They'd gone from seeming reluctant even if it were free, to looking like they absolutely wanted one.‘I made a mistake.’He'd assumed they'd be perfectly satisfied as long as they saw the stat bonus.

Apparently the picture itself mattered too.

Well.

There was a reason pretty and cute things were popular.

Maybe the mistake had been showing them Barbarian-style designs in the first place.

Then he just had to fix it.

He summoned Hail.

Appearing in his Tattooist form with a brush and dyes, Hail stared at the image floating above Merhen's hand.

“Hail. Think you can change the tattoo designs to something like that?”

Hail awkwardly scratched the back of his skull.―Don't tell me you can't?

The words were a question.

Her eyes were not.

Faced with Merhen's murderous stare, Hail hurriedly shook his head. Then he picked up a brush and wrote on a sheet of paper.〈It might…… be possible…….〉―Really?! You mean it? You'll make them cute, right?〈But the effects might change a little…….〉―I don't care. As long as they're cute. They absolutely have to be cute. Got it?〈Yes…… I'll try…….〉Hail reluctantly answered.

But could that actually work?‘Actually, when I think about it, there's no reason it couldn't.’The tattoo miniaturization had been the same.―You want to make them smaller? Why? They look so magnificent like this.

He remembered the Barbarian chief asking in genuine confusion back inside the Gate.

It wasn't that Barbarians couldn't miniaturize their tattoos.

They simply didn't.

Making them cute might be the same.

Why would they ever draw cute pictures?

The stat benefits were one thing, but tattoos also existed to intimidate others and show off.

In other words, Barbarians had never needed cute designs in the first place. Considering that, it might be possible to make them cute while preserving the same stats.‘The materials should be identical anyway.’―Then let's go!

Merhen grabbed both women's hands.

The two women and one undead entered the lounge with Hail.The first stage of work was more or less finished.

“Siwoo.”

“Yes, Hyung.”

“Summon the Holy Sword.”

Park Siwoo nodded and called it forth. A sword appeared amid pure-white light, and Kim Minwoo pulled a Rune from his inventory while looking at it.

Park Siwoo tilted his head at the Rune. At a glance, it looked like a gray stone.

The only unusual thing about it was the countless patterns engraved across its surface.

“What's that?”

“A Rune.”

“A Rune?”

“Look.”

He handed it to Park Siwoo.〈Health Regeneration Rune II〉[Effect 1. Restores 0.1% of maximum Health per minute.]

“A Rune? I've never seen anything like this in my life.”

“It's made with a production technique I learned inside the Gate. You socket it into equipment and gain the effect.”

He explained Runes to Park Siwoo. The more he heard, the paler his expression became.

“Uh…… so you put materials in, craft one, then socket it into equipment?”

“Right.”

“They're expensive to make, but the effects are insanely good.”

“Right.”

Park Siwoo clicked his tongue.

Restoring 0.1% of maximum Health per minute.

It looked tiny written like that, but it wasn't a small effect at all.One hour?

That meant a full 6% recovery.

And you weren't limited to only one Rune.

Up to three could be inserted into each piece of equipment. Just six Health Regeneration Runes like this would restore 36% of maximum Health per hour.

It could dramatically reduce potion consumption.‘This is fucking nuts.’By time served, Park Siwoo was still practically a rookie who hadn't even been Awakened for a year.

But in terms of how many Gates he'd run, he'd accumulated enough experience to smack around most veterans.

He'd learned which options were valuable.

Which ones you could actually feel affecting your body.

And roughly how much those effects were worth. From that perspective, this thing called a Rune was…….‘Fucking broken.’It was an absurdly overpowered technique.

Of course, it did have a clear drawback.

And that decisive drawback was this.

“So even after crafting a Rune, you can't choose the option you get?”

“Yeah. That's the most annoying part.”

Even with identical materials, there was no telling whether you'd get Health regeneration or some garbage option like increased Defense.

And plenty of options gave flat values instead of percentages.

Even among Stage 2 Runes, Cutting Power +20% and Cutting Power +20 were worlds apart.

The former was a premium option.

The latter was garbage.

If he wanted to discard every garbage roll and socket only premium options?

He needed to spend money freely.

Like a lunatic.

“Hyung, you're really going to fill all our gear with Runes? One Stage 2 Rune already costs tens of billions to make. And when the next stage unlocks, you'll have to replace them all.”

In other words, once they socketed Stage 2 Runes and later started making Stage 3s, they'd have to spend a fortune all over again replacing them.

It was like a mobile game undergoing power creep.

A new character came out, so the old one got discarded.

Then another.

And another…….

That kind of payment model.

And it wasn't as though they only had one or two pieces of equipment.

If someone really committed, they could easily socket thirty or forty Runes.

This was a technique where you had to think in trillions of won.

And the higher the Skeletons' proficiency became, the worse it would get.

As their production Skills improved, they'd begin producing higher-grade Runes too.

However.

“Why does that matter?”

“Huh?”

“If the next stage comes out, just replace them. What's difficult about that?”

“No, it'll cost a ridiculous amount of money…….”

Kim Minwoo smirked.

“Look at you. You've grown up. Now you're even worrying about Hyung's money.”

“……

Are you really okay? You're spending too much. It feels like Hyung is getting stuck paying for everything.”

“I have a lot of money.”

“I know that, but…….”

“You don't know exactly how much, though.”

“Uh…… true?”

Park Siwoo nodded.

Very few people knew Kim Minwoo's exact assets.

Park Siwoo certainly didn't.

He still remembered how shocked he'd been when the news said Kim Minwoo had spent 160 trillion won at the Sky Auction House!

Considering that spending, even someone as wealthy as Kim Minwoo could probably have, at most, a few tens of trillions left…….

“Let's see…….”

Kim Minwoo narrowed his eyes as though checking something in front of him.

Then.

“I've got around 200 trillion.”

“……

What?”

“Around 200 trillion. It's not all cash, obviously. Anyway, that's about it.”

Park Siwoo's jaw dropped. Not 20 trillion, but 200?

Even after the Sky Auction House?

“……

Why do you have that much?”

“America and China helped out a little.”

He'd sold 5% of Spendthrift Guild's equity to America for 100 trillion won.

And China had provided some warm support too.

The 240 trillion paid as training fees.

Part of that payment had been deferred until the following month. While he was inside the Gate, both sums had long since arrived.

The Achievement Shop's Exchange System.

It could even convert assets like real estate directly into points.

His total exchangeable amount was 200 points.

At an exchange rate of one point per trillion won.

That was why he had 200 trillion.

And this money was something he could earn again whenever he wanted.

Tutoring alone proved that.

If Merhen opened private magic lessons, wouldn't the tuition probably reach trillions?

If he sold Runes and tattoos?

They were completely new stat-enhancement systems Earth didn't possess. Every ranker in the world would come running with bundles of cash.

Then there was equipment, potions, and everything else. He had more things to sell than he could ever run out of.‘Battery revenue will start coming in eventually too.’Mana?

The Skeletons provided it.

Material costs?

He had mountains of materials.

Failure chance?

Just keep spending until it succeeded.

That was why he could hand these things to his guild members without feeling burdened.

“……

You really are rich.”

“So accept it without worrying. You guys getting stronger benefits me too.”

“……

You're seriously giving us all of this?”

“Of course. It'll cost a bit, though.”

Each piece of equipment could hold up to three Runes. The Skeletons' current Rune Crafting Skill was E-rank.‘They can make up to Stage 2 Runes…….’He intended to fill everything.

“Try socketing that Rune into the Holy Sword. Let's see if it works.”

“Yes.”

Park Siwoo brought the Rune toward the Holy Sword. His eyes widened.

“Hyung, it says I can put it in! Looks like this counts as equipment too. Should I socket it now?”

“Do it. Health regeneration is one of the best possible options.”

“Yes.”

Park Siwoo socketed the Rune into the Holy Sword.

Flash!

The Holy Sword became slightly whiter amid a burst of light. Kim Minwoo nodded at the sight.

“Looks like I'll need to buy materials. A lot of them.”

The moment he said it casually.[Target ‘Park Siwoo's’ Affinity increases.][83 ―〉 85][The details of ‘Guidance of Fate’ have changed.]

“Oh, did it pop?”

Kim Minwoo's eyes gleamed.